Purim

Purim will be celebrated by Jews from tonight through tomorrow evening. The holiday commemorates the victory of the Jewish people over a Persian king's death plot 2,000 years ago. The king was convinced by an advisor that all the Jews in the country should be killed. But Queen Esther, a Jew, persuaded the king not to issue the decree. The story of this event is read during synagogue services. The reading is followed by a day of celebration, when many people wear costumes. The Jewish Community Center of Central Florida will sponsor a Purim Carnival from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. tomorrow at the center, 851 N. Maitland Ave., Maitland.

Dear Variety , Thank you for this opportunity to express myself on these highly respected pages. Your abbreevs are mad confusing! What's a tenpercentery? Isn't it quicker to type " ABC " instead of "Alphabet weblet"? Every issue is like a game. So fun. In any case, can you pass on these letters to a few friends? Don't read them. I'll come over and help think of some more 'breevs. How about calling Fox "The Canidae Weblet?" (That's Latin for Fox, y'all! What?!) Thanks for doing this, Schmidt Dear Carrie Matheson from "Homeland," Yo. You don't know me. My name is Schmidt.

Of all the holidays celebrated by Jewish people, Wednesday's Purim is one of the most unusual. On every other holiday, Jews chant praises of God called hallel but on Purim they do not. The origin of Purim is found in the book of Esther, one of the scrolls that are part of the third section of the Hebrew Bible. Purim has thus been celebrated for more than 2000 years. It is a day of gladness and feasting, commemorating the days that lead to the completion of the building of the second Temple and the exposure of a plan to raze the temple and kill all the Jews in Persia.

JERUSALEM -- Israel declared a heightened security alert Wednesday and barred Palestinians from the West Bank and the Gaza Strip from entering the country, fearing Hezbollah guerrillas might try to carry out a major attack during holiday celebrations this week. The Purim holiday coincides with the end of a 40-day mourning period for Hezbollah commander Imad Mughniyeh, who was killed in a car bombing in Syria last month. Israel denied involvement, but the Lebanese guerrilla group blamed Israel and vowed revenge.

The cast includes an evil, plotting prime minister, a weak, bumbling but good-hearted king, and a sensible, resourceful queen, who also happens to be a beauty queen. But the real star is a cookie.These aren't characters from a TV miniseries or a commercial, but from the Scroll of Esther in the Old Testament. Except the cookie, of course. Sweet hamantashen were not specifically mentioned in the Megillat Esther, but they have come to symbolize Purim nonetheless.This Sunday, the delicious three-cornered, filled cookies will be making command performances in homes, bakeries and delicatessens all over Central Florida to celebrate Purim.

Congregation Sinai of Clermont is sponsoring a Purim concert at 7 p.m. March 7 at Jenkins Auditorium, 691 W. Montrose St., Clermont, featuring Cantor Isaac Kriger and his wife, Elizabeth Brahm Kriger. The Krigers will perform the "Treasures of Jewish Music," a history and chronicle of Jewish music from the 14th century to the present. Selections will be performed in Ladino, Yiddish and Hebrew. Isaac Kriger was the principal lyric tenor and Elizabeth Kriger was the principal mezzo-contralto with the Israeli National Opera.

Purim, one of the happiest Jewish festivals, will begin tonight as congregations gather to hear the story of Esther and her cousin Mordechai read from the Megilah, the scroll of Esther in the Bible.After Purim services there will be parties, masked balls and carnivals.Although its authenticity is sometimes disputed, the book of Esther is an exciting, storybook tale of intrigue and masquerade where good triumphs over evil with a bit of luck and help ''from another place.''According to the story, about 2,236 years ago the Jewish people in Persia were saved from a decreed destruction by a queen named Hadassah, or Esther, who had become queen by keeping the fact that she was Jewish from her husband, King Ahasuerus.

Today almost all candidates for office hire spin doctors to burnish their public images, and whenever our leaders get into personal or political trouble, they engage in something called damage control. If damage control experts had existed when the Purim holiday story took place nearly 2,500 years ago in ancient Persia, history might have looked quite different. Purim, based on the biblical book of Esther, is an annual joyous festival occurring this year on Friday. It commemorates the triumph of Queen Esther and her uncle Mordecai over the genocidal intentions of Haman, the evil prime minister, and the gutless King Ahasuerus.

As a child, Idit Klein celebrated Purim by wearing homemade gowns and tiaras to play beautiful Queen Esther. She fantasized about how she, like the heroine who dangerously confessed her faith to save her fellow Jews in ancient Persia, could have somehow rescued her relatives from the Holocaust. Thirty years later, Klein, the director of Keshet, a pro-gay Jewish advocacy group in Boston, likens Esther's fearful revelation of her religious faith to the experience of coming out of the closet.

Delicious three-cornered, hamantaschen cookies will be making command performances today in homes, bakeries and delicatessens all over Central Florida for Purim.Purim celebrates the rescue of the Persian Jews from genocide more than 2,400 years ago.Sweet, filled hamantaschen have come to symbolize Purim. The shape of the cookies is derived from the hat of the ancient prime minister of Persia. It was the wicked Haman who plotted the extermination of Persian Jews. When Haman's plot was foiled at the last minute, the joyous festival of Purim was proclaimed in celebration.

As a child, Idit Klein celebrated Purim by wearing homemade gowns and tiaras to play beautiful Queen Esther. She fantasized about how she, like the heroine who dangerously confessed her faith to save her fellow Jews in ancient Persia, could have somehow rescued her relatives from the Holocaust. Thirty years later, Klein, the director of Keshet, a pro-gay Jewish advocacy group in Boston, likens Esther's fearful revelation of her religious faith to the experience of coming out of the closet.

St. Patrick's Catholic Church, South Old U.S. Highway 441, Mount Dora, will have a Taize Evening Prayer service at 7 p.m. on the Sundays of March, starting this weekend. The meditative Christian service blends singing, communal prayer and recitation from the Bible. The name comes from a monastic ecumenical community in southern France. Details: 352-385-4492. Lenten observances Howey Community Church, 420 N. Palm Ave., will sponsor Lenten Lessons and Luncheon at 11:30 a.m. Wednesdays throughout the Lenten season beginning next week Wednesday and continuing through April 5. Details: 352-324-2639.

Congregation Sinai of Clermont is sponsoring a Purim concert at 7 p.m. March 7 at Jenkins Auditorium, 691 W. Montrose St., Clermont, featuring Cantor Isaac Kriger and his wife, Elizabeth Brahm Kriger. The Krigers will perform the "Treasures of Jewish Music," a history and chronicle of Jewish music from the 14th century to the present. Selections will be performed in Ladino, Yiddish and Hebrew. Isaac Kriger was the principal lyric tenor and Elizabeth Kriger was the principal mezzo-contralto with the Israeli National Opera.

While the compelling themes of religious holidays remain constant, it is we, the people who celebrate those festivals, who change from year to year. Indeed, our life experiences as individuals and as members of a community keep ancient holidays relevant. That is certainly true as the Jewish people prepare to celebrate the festival of Purim (the Hebrew word for lots or dice) that begins on Monday evening and concludes the following day. The book of Esther, Purim's biblical text, recounts how in the 5th century B.C., an anti-Jewish prime minister named Haman tried to kill all the Jews in the ancient Persian empire, one of the first recorded cases of attempted mass murder.

Today almost all candidates for office hire spin doctors to burnish their public images, and whenever our leaders get into personal or political trouble, they engage in something called damage control. If damage control experts had existed when the Purim holiday story took place nearly 2,500 years ago in ancient Persia, history might have looked quite different. Purim, based on the biblical book of Esther, is an annual joyous festival occurring this year on Friday. It commemorates the triumph of Queen Esther and her uncle Mordecai over the genocidal intentions of Haman, the evil prime minister, and the gutless King Ahasuerus.

While the compelling themes of religious holidays remain constant, it is we, the people who celebrate those festivals, who change from year to year. Indeed, our life experiences as individuals and as members of a community keep ancient holidays relevant. That is certainly true as the Jewish people prepare to celebrate the festival of Purim (the Hebrew word for lots or dice) that begins on Monday evening and concludes the following day. The book of Esther, Purim's biblical text, recounts how in the 5th century B.C., an anti-Jewish prime minister named Haman tried to kill all the Jews in the ancient Persian empire, one of the first recorded cases of attempted mass murder.

The Variety Club of Orlando will have its Swinging on a Star celebration on Saturday at the Clarion Plaza Hotel, 9700 International Drive.There will be a dinner, a dance and a variety of entertainment, including an exhibition by a professional dance troupe.Marilyn Monroe fans can peruse pictures of the movie star by photographer Joseph Jasgur, who will be a guest at Saturday's event. He's the one who said Monroe had six toes on her left foot.A few of his photographs will be for sale.The event will begin at 6:30 p.m.Tickets are $55 for the dinner and dance and $20 for the dance only.

The Variety Club of Orlando will have its Swinging on a Star celebration on Saturday at the Clarion Plaza Hotel, 9700 International Drive.There will be a dinner, a dance and a variety of entertainment, including an exhibition by a professional dance troupe.Marilyn Monroe fans can peruse pictures of the movie star by photographer Joseph Jasgur, who will be a guest at Saturday's event. He's the one who said Monroe had six toes on her left foot.A few of his photographs will be for sale.The event will begin at 6:30 p.m.Tickets are $55 for the dinner and dance and $20 for the dance only.

A covered-dish dinner to celebrate the feast of Purim will be held at 6:30 p.m. today at Temple Shalom Aleichem, 3501 Oak Pointe Blvd. and Pleasant Hill Road.This celebrates the rescue of the Jews in Persia by Queen Esther and Mordecai, her uncle.For details and reservations, call Joyce Seitz, (407) 847-3253.All Jewish families in the area are invited to services at Temple Shalom Aleichem at 8 p.m. Friday and every third Friday of each month.RELIGION NOTESGospel SingsA FREE gospel sing will begin at 7 p.m. today at the St. Cloud Senior Citizens Center, 700 Indiana Ave. In the Name of Jesus, Marty Davis, Valerie McCarty and other local talent will be featured.